{"id":24255,"date":"2019-08-31T11:51:29","date_gmt":"2019-08-31T18:51:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/?p=24255"},"modified":"2019-08-31T12:38:07","modified_gmt":"2019-08-31T19:38:07","slug":"free-virtual-college-tours","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/free-virtual-college-tours\/","title":{"rendered":"Free Virtual College Tours"},"content":{"rendered":"

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 No time or not enough money to visit all of your student’s college tour wish lists? Virtual college tours help whittle down the list.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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My daughter is a junior in high school this year.  The thought of visiting college campuses sounds fun and exciting…and yes, a bit overwhelming. <\/p>\n

But in reality, with my daughter’s high school volleyball and travel club volleyball schedule, I have no idea how we are going to fit in campus tours.<\/p>\n

So far, she has shown interest in visiting 8 campuses.  Most are located in California, thank goodness, but they range from San Diego up to San Francisco. <\/p>\n

In the last couple of years, we have visited two of these campuses, but our “tours” consisted of just walking around on campus, not getting a tour by a student.  It’s not the same experience.<\/p>\n

There is no way we can visit all 8 campuses.  But recently, I discovered there is another way to whittle down the actual number of campus visits we make.  <\/p>\n

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College Tours in Today’s Tech-Savvy World<\/span><\/h2>\n

Thanks to technology, there’s a new great way to visit and explore colleges without stepping foot on campus.<\/p>\n

Many campuses offer virtual college tours through 360-degree and virtual reality (VR) video tours to show off their campus, guided by a student, giving a student’s perspective. <\/p>\n

Virtual college tours often include videos, pictures, student narration, and the opportunity to “look around” with VR or 360-degree photos that allow you to look forward, up, down, right, left, and behind you.<\/p>\n

With a VR campus tour, you need to get a set of VR goggles, this gives the best experience.  Don’t have VR goggles?  No worries, the 360-degree tour simulates a VR tour.  Just use your mouse to explore a 360-degree picture.  Look up, left, all around you.<\/p>\n

In my searching online, I found YouVisit<\/a>, a free VR\/360 degree college tour site.  They house over 600 college visits, giving you the option of a 360-degree tour or a VR tour.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Virtual Colleege Tours<\/span><\/h2>\n

Ohio State University<\/span><\/h3>\n

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I took a virtual college tour of Ohio State University, both of my parents’ alma mater.  Growing up, I had planned on attending Ohio State, but when we moved to California, my plans changed.<\/p>\n

I have to say, after taking the virtual tour, Ohio State University<\/a> is an amazing school.  I wouldn’t mind attending it today, it’s a beautiful campus and they offer so many resources for its students. <\/p>\n

It houses over 1,600 acres and offers numerous modern conveniences for a school started in 1870!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

UCLA<\/span><\/h3>\n

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\"\"<\/p>\n

Next, I visited UCLA<\/a>, where the student tour guide told me UCLA is the number one applied to school in the nation.  Wow.  And I didn’t realize it was built in 1919. <\/p>\n

I love all of the brick buildings, they remind me of many of the large universities in the midwest and back east.   UCLA houses 419 acres of property.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

UC San Diego<\/span><\/h3>\n

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The 360-degree tour of the University of San Diego<\/a> is nice as well.  It features the Geisel Library as you begin the tour, an impressive architectural feat. <\/p>\n

The Geisel Library houses the largest number of Theodor Seuss Geisel drawings in the nation.<\/p>\n

Who is Geisel?  Dr. Seuss!  He was a San Deigo local for many years.  The campus is up on a hill and has an impressive view of Southern California’s beaches.<\/p>\n

Virtual college tours offer so much more than just pictures.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

University of San Francisco<\/span><\/h3>\n

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\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

After San Diego, I cruised up the University of San Francisco<\/a>.  The 360-degree campus tour shows the highlights of living in a vibrant, multicultural city yet having access to the beach nearby. <\/p>\n

Having never been on campus, I was surprised by the ivy-league look and feel of some of the buildings and their decor.  Makes sense, it was founded in 1864. <\/p>\n

The University of San Francisco is a much smaller campus with 57 acres.<\/p>\n

With Silicon Valley nearby and the fact that the city is a magnet for amazing cuisine,  internships and research opportunities are abound in San Francisco.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

University of Colorado, Denver<\/span><\/h3>\n
Some of the virtual campus tours are limited.  For example, the University of Colorado, Denver<\/a> offered was only one of the STEAM buildings. <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
As my daughter is not interested in science, technology, arts, and mathematics, I know this tour won’t appeal to her. <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
University of Colorado, Denver does offer a click on map with pictures<\/a>.  It’s not nearly as helpful, but gives an idea of the campus overall.<\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
My daughter is in interested in this school, but their website does not give enough compelling reasons to put it at the top of her list without a virtual tour of the full campus. <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
Nontetheless, we might have to make a Colorado road trip, as my daughter loves to snowboard!<\/div>\n
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Scheduling A Campus Visit is Easy!<\/span><\/h2>\n
Not only are the virtual college tours very helpful, each video on the YouVisit.com site has 3 easy tabs (buttons) you can click on to get more information. <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
Register Now, Schedule a Tour, and Apply Online.  Very helpful tabs when organizing your college search.  <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
As a result of watching these campus tours, I am also registering at these schools so we can start receiving more materials in the mail for my daughter to review. <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
The collateral information they mail us will help us decide which campuses to visit first.<\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n

Be sure to look for virtual college tours on college websites too.  Many colleges will feature the videos on YouVisit.com, but some colleges offer additional virtual tours on their websites as well.  <\/p>\n

You’ll find visits for ivy-league schools like Harvard and Yale on YouVisit.com, but MIT and Stanford are not on this website.  I did not see a real virtual tour on MIT’s website. <\/p>\n

Stanford offering a walking map tour<\/a> and they also have their own Stanford app<\/a> to give you a view of the school.<\/p>\n

Also, you’ll find many personal college campus visits<\/a> and college insights on YouTube.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Virtual campus tours are not the end-all.  There is no better way to gauge a campus’ life and passion unless you visit in person.  But due to time and money constraints, virtual tours are a great way to narrow down the list to those you want to prioritize.<\/p>\n

As in-person college tours book up fast, I recommend you schedule them now if you would like to book some college tours this year for your high school junior.<\/p>\n

See more Best Free College Prep Resources For Families<\/a> to help get your high school student ready for college.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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